Ellenbecker Investment Group Takes Position in Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP)

Ellenbecker Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 1,128 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $546,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in Ameriprise Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ameriprise Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Ameriprise Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ameriprise Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. 83.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ameriprise Financial Trading Down 2.8%

Shares of Ameriprise Financial stock traded down $14.28 during trading on Friday, reaching $501.27. 393,337 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 494,892. Ameriprise Financial, Inc. has a twelve month low of $385.74 and a twelve month high of $582.05. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $490.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $515.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.24.

Ameriprise Financial (NYSE:AMP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $9.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $9.08 by $0.42. Ameriprise Financial had a return on equity of 69.35% and a net margin of 19.70%. The company had revenue of $4.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.45 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $8.39 EPS. Ameriprise Financial's revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ameriprise Financial, Inc. will post 38.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ameriprise Financial declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, April 24th that permits the company to repurchase $4.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 9.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Ameriprise Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 5th were issued a $1.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 5th. This is a positive change from Ameriprise Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $1.48. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.28%. Ameriprise Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on AMP shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Ameriprise Financial from $510.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Raymond James upgraded Ameriprise Financial from a "market perform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $518.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Ameriprise Financial from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Ameriprise Financial from $507.00 to $542.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Ameriprise Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ameriprise Financial has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $517.13.

Ameriprise Financial Profile

Ameriprise Financial, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides various financial products and services to individual and institutional clients in the United States and internationally. It operates through four segments: Advice & Wealth Management, Asset Management, Retirement & Protection Solutions, and Corporate & Other.